Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1887-08-20
Letters From the People

Mr.. EDIToR.-In your issue 9th lnst.,
there is al article signed X which
purports tn give an answer To 'arequest'
10y southern Mctholis with Result! to
the law OF the Nj. E. Chmca, North, on
the subject of negro equality. x vol
untcers his services relleve lev. ~.
d. Davis, who is engaged in restoring
the dilapidated templ,-dolng great
work. and Cannot come down. Ii he
means 10y 'dilrpidated temple the No
thern Methodist church on the Eastern
shore of Virginia, he could not have Sc
lected more appropriate phrase to rep,
resent its present condition compared
with what it once WAS. 1t has, fnr tile
most part, lost its hold on the Eastern
Shore of Virginia; aid VIII! SIMPLY
because it came down fromits high aud
holy calling and went 10 int .rnedul!lg
with political aud civil matters Which
leoitematrly belong tHt!le State.
Ii hL means by 'dllaptlated Temple
the condition OF all the churches "ll the
Eastern Shore. all I Lave IT, say Is,
while they do not repre- sent aS hlg a
degree of prosperity as all good people
could wish, still they are doing grand
work for God and the salvation VI souls.
There is 81 church for every three nun
dred to four hundred OF the population.
What section North can make better
showing? VIII X bring out the facts
in this connecticut Oh. no; the. people
down here are not heatlicn. Northern
Missionaries laborlng amongst them
CAN only hope for success by prosecuting
from other denominations tearlng
down one branch OF the church Of
Christ to build up another.
But X proceeds to enlightea South
ern Methodist Oh the law Of his church
on the subject Of negro equality. He
brings forward the last issue OF the dis
ciplne. and says, lii this book OF church
laws there is no reference whatever to
negro equality, hence We can honestly
reply to our Southern Methodist broth
er. His church. (Bro. DAVIS church
has no law whatever on the subject.
He then goes on, i'll a general way. to
give expression to the position OF his
church on human rights &c. NOW,
from reading the above quotation one
would naturally conclude that the church
he represents had no specific legislation
on the subject under consideration.
Let us not deal in generalitles, but
come down to something definite. With
lie permission of XII will ask him
some questions, which l hope he will
answer. l. Did not the church he rep
resents establish, some years ago, mixed
conferences aud congregations through
out the South. whenever it could be
done? 3. Did not his church also,
some years ago. establish mixed schools
Throughout the South, wherever itcould
be done, and are not some oil them In
existence to-day; thus trying to educate
the negro aid white children together?
Will he please explain whether the fol-
lowing, passed by last Gen. Conference
of his church in Philadelphia, May rs,
1854 has The authority of law OF not?
Resolved, That this General Confer
ence declares the policy Of the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church to be, that no
member of any society within thechurch
shall be excluded from public worship
In any and every edifice of the denomi-
nation, and no student slladl be excluded
from instruction in any and every school
under the supervision Ut the church, be-
cause of race, color, or previous condi-
lions Of Servitude. !"
/ could give number of other quota
lions from the journal Of the General
Conference, bearing upon this subject;
but | want to know, lbs doubtless many
of your readers do, whether the above
resolution and other Acts of the only
legislation body in the church consti-
tute the laws of tile church, whether
embodied in the discipline or not
When X answers the above questions
you may expect to hear from me again.
Turn on the light. let the truth, the
whole truth, and nothing but the truth
be revealed, and then let the people
Judge for themselves.
SCnUTAToR. :.